#I have another idea about taneda first meeting with Dazai | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

uraharasandals · 4 years

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hi i was hoping if you could do a reader x dazai fic where they date in the port mafia then work at the ADA together! thank you so much! 💞

Hi! Thank you for requesting! The story was getting a bit long so I decided to just show their first interactions after being reconciled instead of working together. I hope you like it!

(Also I haven’t used Tumblr since ages I have no idea how to navigate things whoops)

It wasn’t easy being a spy, but somehow you’ve managed it and came out of it in one piece. Alive. Well, barely, considering the day you handed in your resignation letter you were shot in probably ten different places. Flesh wounds, but all the same, it was a near death, and they weren’t letting you off so easily.

And apparently, more so today, because as you swung out of bed, the ghost of fiery pain shot up your back, where some lackey or another apparently decided it was a good idea to knock you out with a blow to the back of the neck, except they missed. So now you were left with crippling pain down the column of your spine, and by God did it hurt.

It took about twenty minutes of wincing and gritting your teeth, all the while grasping the bedframe so hard your knuckles turned white, and stars erupting behind your eyelids, but eventually the pain subsided, and the ability to be able to breathe without a new jolt of pain was as much of a relief as a breath of fresh air after submerging in water. One of the training methods in the Special Ability Department, you recalled, for combatants.

Combatants. The title caused a memory to surface; your colleague, a bespectacled and dodgy man by the name of Sakaguchi Ango. He was one of the government’s spies too. Where was he now?

The ten paces from your bed to the bathroom was enough for about a thousand possibilities to emerge. Shot. Killed. Tortured. Hung. No; they didn’t do that anymore. Too old-fashioned, apparently. But still a chance. Or he survived. Who knows?

What did it matter, anyways?

Not then, and certainly not now. Once you’ve reported back to the Department, you decided to quit, having had enough running errands for the government which was half-assed anyways. Thankfully, Taneda-san was understanding, and kind enough, to write you a reference for the Armed Detective Agency, ran by a former colleague of his who also served the government once-upon-a-time. You might find it quite suitable for you, he said.

And so that was where you’d spent about half a year or so, fumbling with the ropes but slowly managing now. It was the next thing on the agenda too, after gulping down a cup of steaming black coffee, which you’d learnt in the mafia the best way to spring oneself straight into action. Boarding the train, milling amongst about a few hundred people in the subway station, before emerging and heading to the brown brick building.

The normality of it all was honestly absurd.

Just a few months ago, you were sitting in an office, acting second-in-command for one of the five Executives under Mori’s command, Ozaki Kouyou. Back then, the documents and lists detailing Port Mafia-owned warehouses, targets and whatever that needed to be done was the norm. Planning an assassination on someone, or taking stock of explosives in a warehouse, or riding the limousine with Kouyou to another meeting, was the norm. That was the pace of life, along with the discreet smuggling of information back to the government.

There was another thing that was the norm, you reflected as a hand grasped the shower knob, turning it almost absent-mindedly, allowing the shower of warm water cascade down your body, which reminded you of his touches. Stolen kisses behind closed doors, a brush of fingertips on skin during meetings, that knowing look across the room when it was time to report back to Mori.

It was probably the steam coming from the water, but nonetheless you could feel slight heat creeping up your cheeks as you relieve those memories, before deciding that scrubbing them away along with the lingering sleepiness was probably the best course of method. There was, after all, no point in thinking about the past. Anyone from the mafia was the enemy now, and he was no exception. You shouldn’t let your heart soften just because of one single man, and there was no way you were about to start.

Still…

The relationship was nice while it lasted, no doubt, and you reflected upon this fact as you watch lemon-scented foam wash down the drain. But just before you were the target of everyone — well, nearly everyone’s — bullets, the young executive had disappeared. After the death of his best friend, or so it was rumoured, a man called Odasaku. You didn’t remember his actual name, he was referred to as such by too many people. That was probably one day before you handed in your resignation letter. Not that you meant for it to happen; that was pure circumstance. A short while before that, Sakaguchi Ango also disappeared.

Now, whether that was pure chance was another matter. All you knew was that you definitely did not plan on resigning in the midst of that chaos; for all you knew, that was probably fate playing games with you. Unfortunately, because of, ah, previous entanglements and relationships with Dazai, you had somehow became the centre focus of practically every die-hard mafiaso on that day you stood in front of Mori in his office, which was probably the reason why they were all so trigger-happy to send you off to an early grave. Not because of suspected disloyalty, though some might have came to that conclusion (obviously, those who had more brain-cells), but it was highly likely that they decided to shoot you due to having a relationship with the escaped Executive.

Well, let them doubt and plot and think to their deaths all they want. Even I’m curious as to where that bastard is.

Anyways. There was no time to be wasted thinking of trivial things and driving oneself up walls speculating. You watched as the last remnants of water drip down to the marble tiles, before stepping out to the chilly autumn air and shivering in the cold. Wrapping a towel around yourself, you began to contemplate breakfast and what to wear for work.

Trivial, daily things.

“Good morning, everyone. "

“Oh, you’re finally here, ______.” Preoccupied with making sure the cups of coffee that you were carrying wouldn’t fall and splatter onto the sparkling tiles that Kunikida was so proud of, you only looked up when you heard his voice.

“What do you mean ‘finally’ - ” And that was when you see him. A shadow of your past, causing a shiver run down your spine that probably felt like seeing someone from the grave alive and walking.

Somehow, you had managed to set the container down on a nearby desk while attempting to regain your senses. The confusion was still clogging up your head, so you weren’t sure how you did that, plus you were still focused on him. His back was in front of you, so you couldn’t see his face, but you were sure. That dark and curly hair -

“_______? You okay?“

“I - yeah, I’m fine.“ Shit. Unwanted memories flooded your mind, and you shook your head to clear them before clearing your throat, regaining your demeanor. "W-who is this?"

"A new recruit. He came under Taneda-san’s recommendations. The Director’s just introducing him to us.” Kunikida supplied. Indeed, he was talking to the Director, while Yosano-sensei was surveying him, a hand on her chin - deciding the best way to cut him up before healing him, maybe? - Ranpo was making his way steadily through a bag of star-shaped candies, but you could see him analyzing the figure as well. You weren’t sure where Kenji was, but it didn’t really matter. “I’ll introduce him to you too.” He tapped the figure on the shoulder, who spun around with a cheery grin on his face - an expression that was more foreign than his presence in this office. “This is ______. They joined our organization earlier too, so you two might just get along."

If the mention of your name surprised him, Dazai didn’t betray any emotion. His eyes were observant, stopping and raking your face for a brief moment before his uncharacteristic grin appeared again. "I look forward to working with you, _____-kun*. Do teach me the ropes, would you?"

"Gladly,” You replied cooly, stepping forward and shaking his outstretched hand. Two could play this game, and it would do no one good if they knew you two were formerly, ah, associated. And if they knew his background and where he was from, well, let’s just say that Taneda-san made sure your references excluded your time in the Mafia. He had taken care to only mention your excellent results in the government (except that the Director was eventually informed, but by that time your work for the Agency was already top-notch), so you also took care to put your mafiaso background in the past. “I hope you find the Agency easy to adapt to, Dazai-san.” For effect, you squeezed his hand, and was satisfied to see a glimmer of surprise behind his otherwise immobile expression.

“You guys know each other?” Yosano-sensei asked, surprised. You cursed her internally, but Dazai was quick to cover up. “No way,” Dazai said carelessly. “I’m sure ______-kun is just being friendly, right?"

"Of course!” You made sure your smile was more than a grimace. “Oh, Dazai-san, I didn’t get your portion of coffee. Do you want to come along? The cafe downstairs is amazing.” Before he could reply, you had already spun on your heel, heading for the stairs.

“What the hell are you doing here?” You hissed, shoving him up the brick wall in the alley right behind the ADA’s building. You weren’t sure what led you to this violent outburst, but it didn’t matter; shock translated to anger, and here you were. “Missing for almost a year? Turning up here in this - this new get-up and just pretending nothing happened?"

"Why, ______, I would’ve thought you were glad to see me. Weren’t you happy your lovely boyfriend is still alive?" Dazai lost his cheerful facade, and the man glaring down at you showed a sliver of the danger and hostility that formed his aura during his time in the mafia. His smirk was scornful, and the light had vanished from his eyes. "Well?” He prompted, and the anger fueling you left you; your clenched fists on his shirt eased and he leaned back against the wall.

“I don’t know about ‘boyfriend’.” Your emotions swirled within you, and the confusion that you had when you first saw him came back. The sudden disappearance of anger made you light-headed, and you stumbled; Dazai caught you. The rough bandages brushing against your skin made memories rush back, and you fought back a sob. “But I do know the bastard in front of me is my friend. And if you want to build a relationship from that, that would be great."

"I’m glad you still like me, _____.” The playfulness was apparent in his tone, despite the existing rough edge. “I would’ve committed suicide otherwise. How can I live without you?”

"Don’t say that.“ His arms circled around your neck and you were glad; it allowed some distance but still intimacy. If he had hugged you around the waist you weren’t sure how you would respond. "I don’t want to hear you joking about your death anymore. Do you have any idea - "

"I do.” How quiet his voice was surprised you. “I’m really sorry, _______. I had to take care of something. But it’s alright now. I’m turning over a new leaf. The mafia is behind me. I’m done killing people. I’m done being Mori-san’s apprentice."

"I don’t care about any of that.” And you really didn’t. You had loved him when he was at his worst, in the mafia. Nothing would have surprised you, but you were happy that he decided to break free out of his own will. Spending half a year worrying whether he had died or not wasn’t easy, but now that he was back in front of you, you weren’t really concerned how he was.

To put it coarsely, you were just glad he was alive.

"Thank you, ______.“ His smell felt foreign, yet there was a feeling of returning home. You weren’t sure what happened, but tears were rolling down your cheeks and you felt ridiculously giddy; a sense of immense relief flooded your mind. You returned the hug hesitantly, and felt him murmur against your ear. "Thank you."

Bonus:

"You two were gone pretty long."

"Yeah, we ran into the mafia halfway and spent some time knowing each other. Apparently we are a pretty good combination. Right, Dazai-san?"

"You got it, _____-kun! Oh, Kunikida-kun, the coffee downstairs is great! You should drink yours before it gets cold."

"You two what now?"

*so I decided to use the ’-kun’ honorific because that is applicable to both women and men. For men, it is a common honorific for those younger/close with them. ’-kun’ for women is used only when the individual is close with the addresser. In any case, this honorific shows intimacy so I had Dazai use it. And because Dazai is carelessly intimate with people (outwardly), I had the reader address him with ’-san’ rather than using equally careless honorifics.

#bungou stray dogs #bsd #bsd imagines #Dazai Osamu #dazai #dazai imagines #mafia dazai #Fic #Anon #asks

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patchwork-panda · 4 years

Text

If A Moment Is All We Are (ch 11/?)

AO3 link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24121633/chapters/61459765

I thought I was going to throw up.

My nerves were already bad enough even before I got into the police car, but as I sat in the back with Kunikida, our driver rushing us towards the nearest police station, every jostle and bump in the road made the bile rise higher and higher in the back of my throat. I turned to look at Kunikida, who was sitting one seat over from me by the other window and wondered how he could look so calm.

After we had identified the corpse as Taneda Mayu, the second woman reported missing, given her clothes and whatever identifiable features remained, I’d been given all of two minutes to finish freaking out before Kunikida pushed me towards the nearest police vehicle and joined me inside. Now that Mayu had been found, the police needed to complete the autopsy and call her parents for identification; since we were still officially helping the police on this investigation, Kunikida and I would be joining them.

Normally, we wouldn’t be allowed to stick our noses this far into an official investigation but Kunikida somehow managed to convince the police that we needed to talk to Mayu’s family before they delivered the bad news. They would let us borrow an interview room for a few minutes and there, I would need to activate my Ability and see if I could use my visions to learn something—anything—that could lead us to Mayu’s killer. Hopefully, I would see something important enough that would allow us to save the others before it was too late. If Mayu’s body had already turned up, then there was a possibility that Suzuki Yoshiko, victim number one, was also dead already too and that the other missing women would follow shortly if we didn’t hurry.

But there were several problems with this plan.

I never had full control of my Ability in the past, was terrified of activating it for the past several months to a year and I hadn’t even tried using it since joining the Agency. In fact, the very last person I had been in physical contact with was Dazai, which meant nothing considering his Ability nullified mine before it could even activate.

President Fukuzawa had said I should have control of it by now and Atsushi had mentioned the side effects being less severe but since I hadn’t tried using my Ability again since joining the Agency, I still didn’t have any idea to what degree either of these statements would be true. Sure my eyes looked normal again but would that be it? Would touching the Tanedas still result in nausea, dizziness, debilitating headaches or possibly even blacking out? Or would I see things from the perspective of someone who couldn’t give me any useful information?

Or worse... would I be forced to witness yet another death?

We hit another pothole and I slapped my hand over my mouth.

From his side of the vehicle, Kunikida glanced at me.

“Carsick?”

Not trusting myself to answer, I nodded weakly.

“I see.”

He pointed out the window, at the streetlights we were passing as they flickered on one by one. The sun was starting to set.

“Try counting the lights. We can’t roll down the windows back here but this might distract you. If it makes you feel better, we’re almost there.”

In the light of the setting sun, his gray-green eyes looked softer than usual.

“You can do this, Kusunoki. I believe in you.”

Nodding again, less hesitantly this time, I returned my attention to the outside and started counting. As the sky darkened and night began to fall, I began to see my face and the inside of the car reflected more clearly on the darkened glass of the window. I could see Kunikida, sitting there by the other window in the back seat, flicking through his phone with his arm propped up against the door and his long legs crossed in front of him. He looked slightly uncomfortable because of the hard seats and the overall lack of room (he was a hundred eighty-nine centimeters tall, after all), but other than that, he seemed completely at peace. And for some reason, seeing how calm Kunikida was as he sat there made me feel calmer as well.

As the car slowed to a gradual stop in front of the police station, I realized my nausea had long since faded away.

***

Kunikida shut the door behind us as the fluorescent lights clicked on overhead.

The interview room was warm and well-lit, with a couple of leafy plants in one corner and a set of filing cabinets in another. In the center of the room was a single, simple wooden desk with two chairs on either side; two were for us, and two were for Taneda Mayu’s parents, both of whom would be coming for this interview.

The nerves that had faded away on the car ride over came back with a vengeance as I realized that while I’d seen dead bodies before, this would be the very first time I had to meet with the relatives of someone who had passed—my first time seeing such grief in person. I was about to turn to Kunikida to ask how he dealt with it when the door opened once again and an older couple walked in.

My breath stilled in my lungs as I looked upon the woman’s face, which would have been an exact copy of her daughter Mayu’s over twenty years ago. Like her daughter, she was quite tall for a Japanese woman and had large, expressive brown eyes. Her husband, a man with a head of delightfully curly black hair, stood just a little shorter than her, but he kept one hand out to hold hers as they slowly came towards the desk where Kunikida and I would be interviewing them. Both the Tanedas were kind-faced and polite and as we bowed across the room to each other, I realized that they had no idea what they were about to hear.

My stomach clenched painfully as I heard the hopefulness in Mr. Taneda’s voice.

“Detectives,” he stated, his voice quavering a little as he looked from me to Kunikida. “Thank you for your hard work. We came as soon as we could.”

Kunikida nodded.

“Of course, sir.”

He gestured to the table and all four of us sat.

As Mrs. Taneda gingerly took her seat, I saw her knobby hand grip the armrest gently and my pulse went up the moment I saw her bare hands. To steady myself, I took a deep breath in and tried to put what I hoped was a polite smile on my face. I quickly stopped when I realized it must look more like a grimace.

“We called you here because we’d like to go over some things with you once more,” Kunikida explained, his back straight and his tone professional.

Shooting me a quick, meaningful glance, he put his elbows on the table and leaned forward a little, as if asking me to copy him. When I didn’t move, however, he pulled a photograph out of one of the police folders and slid it across the table towards the Taneda’s, throwing me another look as he did so. Very slowly and very hesitantly, I also put my arms up on the table, my bare fingers slightly outstretched.

“This is a copy of one of the photos you gave the police recently, correct?” Kunikida asked.

“Yes,” Mrs. Taneda said, smiling a little as she glanced down at the picture. “This was taken a couple months ago, at a family gathering. She really loved that dress.”

“And that bracelet,” Mr. Taneda said, pointing to Mayu’s wrist in the photograph. “She insisted it was too much for us to give her something so expensive but she earned it. She did just start her new nursing job, after all.”

His fingers lingered on the photograph as he passed it back to us and I realized I had an opportunity to touch his hand.

But for some reason, I couldn’t move.

It’ll only be for a second. Maybe even less. A single brush will do it.

Mr. Taneda took his hand off the photograph and withdrew it and before I could bring myself to even try, my chance was already gone. I could feel Kunikida’s eyes on me but I wouldn’t look at him.

I felt, rather than heard, his sigh.

“Okay. I know this question has been asked before but I’d like to just confirm it,” Kunikida continued, not a trace of tension in his voice, “To our knowledge, you were the last people to see Mayu that afternoon when she went out for a tennis game?”

“That’s right,” Mrs. Taneda said. “She was supposed to meet a friend at a rec center between our house and the friend’s, but her friend said she never arrived and called us instead.”

“She didn’t have a tracking feature on her cell phone but it appears she at least got to this station,” Kunikida said, returning to the map and holding it such that all four of us could hang onto it if needed. “At least, that’s what our latest information indicates.”

He wasn’t lying; that information had literally just been handed to us as we’d walked in this room. Kunikida pointed to a spot not far from where Mayu had been reported missing. It was a train station that connected to the line that ran right by Saeki Mei’s place of work: the convenience store. I stared at it, and then looked back up at Kunikida, who was not looking at me but at the Tanedas in front of us.

I could tell he was just buying me enough time to try to attempt a touch (he knew how little time I actually needed) but try as I might, I just couldn’t bring myself to move. I could barely even breathe.

“Any idea on possible routes she might’ve taken? Stores or cafes she liked to drop by near this area?”

As the Tanedas leaned in to study the map, I saw that there were wrinkles on one corner of the map. Without thinking about it too hard, I reached forward and went to smooth it out, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mrs. Taneda reach out as well; it seemed she had the same idea. If I just let my hand collide with hers for a moment, I would have what I needed.

Time seemed to slow.

Our fingertips were but centimeters apart.

But at the last minute, I looked up into Mrs. Taneda’s face...

...And saw Mayu’s dead, bloated face flipping over in the river, her sunken eyes boring into mine.

“NO!!”

I pushed back away from the table, nearly knocking over the table as I fell back in my seat, the metal chair I’d just been sitting in crashing to the ground with me in it. I scrambled to my feet to see the Tanedas looking just as terrified as I had been a moment earlier. Kunikida...

I froze.

I had seen him looking angry at Dazai before but nothing prepared me for the sheer fury I saw in his eyes. I looked away and ducked for the chair.

“I’m sorry—I’m so, so sorry—” I stammered, bowing hastily as I picked it up with shaking hands.

But before I could upright the chair, Kunikida’s hand descended on my shoulder.

His hand never leaving my shoulder, I felt him pick up the chair next to me and instantly set it on the ground in one smooth motion. The legs scrunched up against the carpet just enough for me to hear it as it settled and before I could move away, his grip on my shoulder tightened considerably.

“I’m very sorry about this but could you please excuse us for a moment?”

His voice might’ve still been gentle and professional but I could tell that Kunikida was barely holding it in.

“Kusunoki?”

His glasses flashed as he turned to me.

“Can I talk to you outside for a second?”

***

The door crashed shut behind us and I winced.

“What are you doing?” Kunikida snapped. His voice echoed off the walls of the interrogation room the police officers had lent us, making me feel like I was the suspect in our kidnapping-turned-murder case.

“What the hell happened back there?!”

“I’m sorry!” I exclaimed, bowing because I had no idea what else to do. “I don’t know what came over me. I—I tried to reach out to touch Taneda-san but then she looked up and I saw Mayu and—”

“Mayu is not here,” Kunikida stated. “Her mother is. I know they look alike but you need to think about the person in front of you and the case we’re trying to solve. Don’t lose focus.”

“I... I know,” I stammered, clutching my arms to my sides.

I was shaking.

“I... I just need a minute. I haven’t used my Ability in so long and I don’t want to see another corpse—”

“You don’t want to see another corpse, huh?”

Kunikida’s voice dropped to a deadly whisper.

“Do you think any of us want to see another corpse?”

I heard the click of footsteps and looked up to see him advancing on me, a steely glint in his eye.

“Let me remind you, Kusunoki-kun,” he growled, “that Taneda Mayu is one of four—no, five—women who have gone missing within the last ten weeks. If we don’t solve this case fast, we are going to be fishing many more bodies out of Yokohama’s canals within the next several weeks, I guarantee it.”

He was right. There would be more.

And one of them would be Mei-chan...

As I thought about the girl at the convenience store with the long, black ponytail, the one who had been so nice to me that she’d cheered me up after a long hard day, Kunikida’s tall figure slowly disappeared behind a panel of rippled glass. I felt something cold on my face when I blinked and realized they were tears.

I quickly reached up to wipe them away just as I heard Kunikida’s voice again. He sounded more tired than stern.

“Get it together, Kusunoki.”

His large hands descended upon my shoulders again and I looked up through the spaces between my fingers to see him looking down at me from his considerable height.

“Listen to me. Taneda Mayu was killed very recently—within the last several days, the officer said. She was the second to go missing, which means there are still three—no, four—missing women who could still be found and saved, including your friend Mei.”

His hands were heavier than ever on my shoulders but his voice had softened a little. I put down my hands so I could better see his face.

“I know you’re scared of what you’re going to see,” Kunikida said quietly. “I am too, but I know you can do this. I brought you on this case because I know—because I have seen what you’re capable of. Stop letting your fear get the better of you and stop running away from your own Ability!”

He gritted his teeth and his grip tightened on my shoulders.

Kunikida looked like he was in pain and I was the one who had done this to him. I felt something constrict around my heart.

“Kunikida-san...?”

“When you asked me to let you join the Agency,” Kunikida whispered, his sage-colored eyes never leaving my face, “You said you wanted to help people. Is that still true or not?”

He may not have shouted but in the silence following his words, his voice echoed around the room.

“Is that still true or not?”

“It is...” I answered, my voice barely audible even to myself. “I want to save Mei-chan. I have to save her...”

“Then save her,” Kunikida said, squeezing my shoulders so tightly that they almost went numb. “Bring back the Kusunoki Kyou who ran back inside the art gallery to try to help me. Bring back the girl who tried to fight off Yasha Shirayuki with a pair of office scissors.”

His voice dropped so low I had to strain to hear it.

“Bring back the girl I vouched for when Dazai said she had potential.”

My shaking hands stilled at last.

For a moment, we just stared at each other. We were standing so close to each other that I could see my face reflected in Kunikida’s glasses. My eyes were red and I was still crying but I no longer looked scared.

Because I no longer felt scared.

Kunikida was right. I needed to stop running away. Both he and Dazai had vouched for me and I had passed the test; I was a member of the Armed Detective Agency now and I needed to start acting like one. If I didn’t stop running away now, then when would I? A year? Two years? More? If I continued to let my fears and anxieties make my decisions for me, I’d be right back where I started: hiding away in a cheap studio apartment, spending my days idling away with nothing to do but wait for my life to someday end.

This stopped now.

I let out a loud, undignified sniffle and started wiping my face again. When Kunikida let go of me and started backing away, I called out to him.

“It’s okay.”

I gave one last sniff, wiping my face with the tissue he awkwardly handed to me and blew my nose.

“How embarrassing of me...”

Kunikida was right. I was better than this. I should know that better than anyone, having risked life and limb to join the Agency, to gain control of my powers. I had to learn to face up to my fears if I was going to save Mei and the others... and if I were to become anything like Kunikida and the other detectives at the Agency.

I put away the tissue, took in a deep breath and straightened up.

Even at my full height, I was still a full head shorter than Kunikida but he was looking at me as if I stood taller than I was.

“Thank you, Kunikida-san. I’m fine now.”

I pushed past him and went to the door. When I had the thin handle of the doorknob in my grip, I turned to him and smiled. I could feel resolve burning in my chest.

“I’m going to save Mei-chan. I’m going to save all of them. And I’m going to touch as many hands as I need to do it.”

Kunikida crossed his arms over his chest.

“Good.”

***

“Sorry about that,” I said as I sat back down in my chair. “I thought I saw a uh... spider...”

“Oh, it’s okay!” Mrs. Taneda murmured, putting her hand over her mouth. “Are you alright?”

“I am,” I said hastily, hoping to move on from my stupid, made-up lie.

Even worse than the lie was the fact that Mrs. Taneda kind of reminded me of my own mother, and lying to my own mother had never been easy...

“But more importantly, we should finish up. I’m sorry we had to bring you here so abruptly, I’m sure you have things to do this evening.”

As I sat, Kunikida closed the door to the room and the puff of air lifted the map off the table and onto the floor.

“Oh!”

At once, Mrs. Taneda and I both reached for it and this time, I didn’t shy away from physical contact. A couple of fingers touched and although nothing happened at first, the moment I closed my eyes, an image washed over me...

I am in an old apartment complex. The door is open. Several people are inside the main living area. There, in the corner of the room, is a small shrine, a photo of Taneda Mayu framed in black sitting inside the wooden box. There is a bowl of incense, some oranges and a tiny teddy bear placed before the photo. These were all Mayu’s favorite things.

I smile and lay down one final item the detectives managed to recover from the killer’s home: a thin, silvery bracelet, the one Mayu had never taken off since the moment we bought it for her.

I do hope Mayu doesn’t mind that I kept it for her shrine. It was too late to bury her with it...

I clap my hands together and pray before the image, recalling my daughter’s laugh and her cheerful voice. Tears run down my face as I feel my husband walk up behind me and join me in prayer...

I heard someone clearing their throat loudly behind me and I realized it was Kunikida, I was still in the interview office and Mrs. Taneda had meekly retracted her hand. I couldn’t have been out that long but my fingers had definitely lingered long enough for the situation to get awkward. Shaking my head abruptly, I snapped back the map and rubbed my eyes.

I could feel a slight headache coming on but interestingly enough, it was nowhere near as bad as it had been the last time, when I’d seen that vision of Mrs. Yamazaki. Atsushi was right. The side effects really were becoming less severe...!

“Sorry. I think I fell asleep for a second.”

The name of the condition finally came back to me and I tried to force a laugh.

“I actually have narcolepsy...”

The Tanedas looked a little concerned so I sat back in the chair and gave the map back to Kunikida, who seemed to have understood what happened. He could tell from the look in my eyes that I’d seen something but wasn’t sure how useful it might be.

I faced Mr. Taneda and tried to think of a way to pull myself out of the vision once I was in. Kunikida making a noise definitely worked but how could I get myself out of it? I wouldn’t always be working with a partner on these assignments in the future and I had to learn how to do this on my own. Somehow, I would need to be able to move my own body or make it react while I was still occupied looking through someone else’s eyes, at another time. In a flash, it came to me.

I needed something heavy I could drop...

I put my messenger bag, the one I’d been carrying with me everywhere since starting my job at the Agency, on the corner of the table. Then, I looked around for something I could comment on, some way to get Mr. Taneda to lean forward a little more. I didn’t think reaching for a dropped item would work twice; it might look a little strange and I’d come across as even more unprofessional than before. To avoid arousing suspicion, I enlisted Kunikida’s help.

“By the way, Kunikida-san, what time is it?”

Raising one eyebrow, he lifted his watch up off the table.

“It’s six-thirty one.”

“You sure about that?”

I pointed to Mr. Taneda’s watch, a small, digital device that wrapped loosely around his wrist.

“I think yours is running a little fast. Look at Taneda-san’s watch.”

As both men leaned forward to compare, I subtly touched the tips of my fingers to Mr. Taneda’s wrist, taking care not to touch Kunikida’s (I wasn’t sure I could handle two people at once). This time, when I felt the pull, like I was circling a large drain, I was ready and I bumped into the table leg so that my bag would fall to the ground. I had two seconds before the sound of my stuff hitting the floor would wake me up...

I am walking in the streets. It’s mid-afternoon judging by where the sun is in the sky. I’m following the river where she was found…

I pass several benches, a train station, a rec center.

I’m not sure how much longer I will walk until I see it, the place where those two detectives pulled my Mayu out of the river.

How did it come to this? How did she end up so far from home? Why here?

I throw a flower into the water and watch the current take it away...

I hear the thud of my backpack hitting the floor and I pull my hands away. My head was starting to spin. Judging from Kunikida’s reaction, my actions were well-timed and I smiled softly and thanked Mr. Taneda for allowing me to check the time. As if on cue, one of the police officers we’d rode up to the station with rapped at the door and opened it. Kunikida looked to me and I met his gaze for the briefest of moments before I nodded to the officer.

“Would you like to speak to the Taneda family? We’re actually done.”

I bowed hastily to the old couple, thanked them for their time and walked out the door, Kunikida hot on my heels. I stumbled the moment I got out of the room and Kunikida grabbed onto my elbow to keep me steady.

“Thanks,” I mumbled, putting my hand over my eyes as the dizziness suddenly got worse.

“What did you see?” Kunikida whispered as we stood in the hallway, the fluorescent lights flickering slightly overhead.

“Not much,” I admitted and I relayed everything to him as best I could. Kunikida nodded and thought to himself as I tried to steady myself on my feet. Still feeling weak, I finally lifted up my head and he clapped me on the shoulder and nodded approvingly.

“We’ll have to keep investigating but I think we can call it a night for now. Nice work.”

“Thanks. Uh, Kunikida-san? Where’s the restroom?”

As soon as he pointed down the hall, I pushed past him but it was too late. I had only walked about two feet before I leaned over and puked right on the floor.

Kunikida winced.

“How about I take you home, Kusunoki-kun...?”

#bungo stray dogs #bungo stray dogs x reader #kunikida #kunikida doppo #kunikida doppo x oc #fanfiction

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akutagawaprize · 7 years

Text

Youkai AU

After Harry Potter AU, Figure Skating AU and the April Fools Taishou Stray Dogs AU, you might be thinking "Not again" right? Hah, as if i can be stopped!

Now I bring a youkai AU!

Let me be clear that I am no expert when it comes to Japanese mythology; any erroneous information you may read was made for artistic liberty. I did my best to research, but in the end I cannot hide that my biggest influences were Nurarihyon no Mago, Noragami, xxxHolic, and Natsume Yuujinchou. Since I’ve also read Lafcadio Hearn's Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things, I may have also included elements that were directly taken from the stories in its pages.

Although the idea’s been stewing at the back of my head since forever, this post was written after being greatly inspired by this upcoming set of buraiha goods (1) (2). Now I'm not sure if they'll be selling other characters fitting in with this theme, but no matter what, I wanted a world where ADA will be mostly humans since major conflicts in these sorts of stories involve clashes between youkai and humans. Although at times, meddlesome gods step in~~

Unlike my other AUs which tried to keep Atsushi as the "hero" of the story, this time the main conflict centers around... Ranpo! Is it surprising? Believe me, even I was amused that this was where the direction went while I was brainstorming. I do think it's fitting though, as ADA was originally formed to give Ranpo a safe space to use his intellect as a means to help investigate criminal activities.

EDIT: Funny because after making this post, BONES posted this.

And with that, the characters!

Dazai Osamu

— A bandaged man traveling across the nation offering his services as an onmyouji. The truth is, he's half-human, half-youkai —the product of a raunchy one-night stand between a drunken Aomori official and a powerful youko on her way to becoming a Tenko. The Inari Kami who were waiting for the entry of another Tenko raged and forcibly took away the kitsune's hoshi no tama (a kitsune’s life force), draining her of her power and eventually her life. Their offspring would soon be raised by Mori, still a minor deity at the time. Despite not being a fullblooded youkai, Dazai can manifest up to 5 tails . He also has white fur, usually associated with a kitsune who achieved 8 to 9 tails. Dazai can not only drive out spirits and spiritual entities, he can also manifest in the dreams of others, take flight, become invisible and create illusions. He can blend in with humans even in daylight, although he cannot possess them. Under Mori he was a scary youkai who inspired awe and respect, but now he's just a freeloader in Ranpo's shrine, spending his days drinking sake and irritating Kunikida. Usually he is in control of his human appearance, but would sometimes expose himself especially when rattled by the presence of dogs.

Oda Sakunosuke — A half-human, half-youkai with doglike features. On certain days, at a certain mountaintop, he would drink sake and enjoy a feast with his good friends Dazai and Ango. Despite being an inugami, Oda never made Dazai feel threatened in his presence. And although not someone of influence or power, he was known throughout the Kansai region for being a kind youkai who wouldn’t senselessly kill even if his father used to be a feared dai-youkai. Oda loved humans and embraced both their good and bad natures, but this love would turn out to be the reason for his demise. He openly opposed children sacrifices, and thus earned the ire of a few gods. Mori, newly appointed as a god of death and disease, told Oda he would spare him his life if he would offer five orphan children to appease the offended gods. Oda refused and was consequently killed. Dazai would later realize that Mori planned everything to please the gods and secure his place.

Sakaguchi Ango — A half-human, half-youkai with raccoon-like features. On certain days, at a certain mountaintop, he would drink sake and enjoy a feast with his good friends Oda and Dazai. Hailing from Shikoku, he journeyed to the mainland under the orders of a dai-youkai named Taneda. Like Oda, he is considered an oddball because he takes more interest in texts and records left behind by humans. As a bakedanuki, he can perform a heritage technique which stirs up leaves around the area, allowing him to trap opponents within a spiral of leaves. Although Ango himself is not aware of this, his reports to Shikoku allowed Mori the needed information to get rid of Oda. Because of this, his friendship with Dazai soured. Ango was last seen in the capital, accompanying a group of onmyouji.

Edogawa Ranpo — A survivor of the the Great Fire of Meireki. Not only was he left orphaned and without a home, he was also ostracized after revealing it was a well-known monk who accidentally started the fire by cremating an allegedly cursed kimono. He was accused of slander. Chased out by the angry Edo people, he ended up passing out in front of a run-down shrine for a local deity. As Ranpo's parents were the deity's fervent followers, the deity took him in. Bored of the world and wanting to live the rest of his days in peace and solitude, he passed on his divinity to Ranpo. As a new deity, Ranpo has much to learn. Because he is strongwilled and has no filter, he gets in trouble not only with youkai but also with his fellow deities. In addition, his scent is tempting to all sorts of supernatural creatures.Thankfully, he manages to form a household that will defend him and help him become the best deity he can be!

Fukuzawa Yukichi — A ronin who once took part in the Keian Uprising. He is a man concerned not only with the state of disgruntled samurai families he had once wished to champion, but also enlightenment, exercise of liberty, impartial justice, and the overall betterment of people's lives. Living as a ronin, he grew to become more and more jaded through the years. Upon meeting Ranpo and developing fatherly feelings towards this kid he viewed as similar to a newly-hatched duckling, he decided to be his protector, not knowing then that Ranpo was recently made a deity. Fukuzawa has no spiritual awareness, but he possesses a natural barrier that makes youkai and other supernatural creatures wary of him. His sword can cut through demons and even heavenly beings; Fukuzawa was previously unaware of this, saying he just found it at the shrine of the god of felines and fortune.

Nakajima Atsushi — An amnesiac foreign youkai Dazai claimed he found while he was trying to drown himself in the river. He is an interesting case; spirits and demons usually don't stray far away from their land of birth not only because it naturally weakens them, but also because land demons can't cross seas as they will only end up as prey for waiting ayakashi and underwater demons. However, Atsushi's weretiger form is still very much powerful and can rival even the most well-known cat/cat-like youkai of their land. Interested in Atsushi and wanting to raise him into becoming a proper youkai, Dazai decides to make the confused boy his apprentice. Can only transform into a full tiger when the moon's out. His favorite food is the chazuke served by the inn nearest to Ranpo's shrine.

Kunikida Doppo — A scholar deeply indebted to Fukuzawa. Not only is he well-educated, he also trains in martial arts and wants Fukuzawa to be his teacher when it comes to the way of the sword. Ranpo deduces he has talent when it comes to driving out spirits, so he was also forced to diligently train as an onmyouji under Dazai. Kunikida's preferred method of fighting supernatural entities are through the use of ofuda (paper talismans). He can use them for purification and to bind weaker youkai. Usually he carries blank papers and ink with him, which is a hassle but something he’s gotten used to. Though at first he was scared of the unknown, he's starting to become unfazed by all the unbelievable things that usually comes their way. He is friends with a man nicknamed "zashiki warashi" because said friend won't leave his home, as well as an actual zashiki warashi who wants to make him notice her. The one in charge of the household's expenses.

Yosano Akiko —Came from another province and has a somewhat infamous reputation in her hometown for beating up her would-be harassers to the point they had to lock themselves in jail to escape her. Her family are longtime friends of the Edogawas, so she rushed to check up on them as soon as she heard about the great fire in Edo. After learning about Ranpo's fate, she chose to stay and act as a priestess for his shrine. Although Yosano didn't mean for it to happen, she became endowed with mystical healing powers after being possessed by a lake demoness Dazai scorned. After getting used to her newfound ability, she would end up terrorizing the rest of the household by asking sweetly if they wanted to help her practice her healing. (Nobody ever volunteers.)

Tanizaki Junichirou — A cowardly young man who came to Ranpo's shrine asking for him to bless their home since he thinks there are malevolent spirits after his younger sister Naomi. What he doesn't want to admit to himself is that his sister Naomi is the spirit, as she died during the Great Fire of Meireki. Bursting with unusually high spiritual energy, Tanizaki wrecked havoc in his village to the point that Dazai had Atsushi transform to stop him. After accepting the reality of his sister's death and showing remorse for his actions, Tanizaki was ordered by Ranpo to join his household, taking in the roles of being the shrine groundskeeper and the deity's personal errandboy.

Naomi — A beautiful girl who met an untimely death. Her brother's grief attracted evil forces to his side and almost turned the both of them into vengeful youkai. After her purification she was able to become a roaming spirit. As she is unable to cross to the land of the dead yet, she naturally chose to stick by her brother's side. Everyone can see Naomi but Fukuzawa.

Miyazawa Kenji — A young farmer boy from ◯ mountain. He possesses supernatural strength and an extremely suspect knowledge about youkai and how to ward them off. According to Dazai though, he is 100% human. He came down from ◯ mountain to give offerings to Ranpo's predecessor, but ended up taking residence near Ranpo's shrine to tend to a rice paddy which was the previous home of a hostile youkai. No one dares cross him when he's hungry.

Izumi Kyouka — Her mother was a yuki onna who was killed by a traveling onmyouji from the capital. Ozaki took her in and taught her to be distrustful of humans. Eventually, Kyouka became convinced that embracing her human side would only bring her suffering. After she got separated from Ozaki's demon parade, she got lost and was found by a bunch of bandits. Scared and remembering Ozaki's words, she killed everyone by freezing them to death. News about her spread and she was hunted, eventually being caught by Atsushi. He hid her in Ranpo's household and taught her that not all humans were bad. When Ozaki located her and tried to get her back, Kyouka said she wished to stay in the world of light. Has a black hole for a stomach, increasing Kunikida's worries about their household expenses.

Mori Ougai — Started out as a minor deity of healing. During the Heian period, he managed to overthrow a major god by gaining a sizable following after saving the life of a man who would later become the head of the influential Minamoto clan. He's now a god of death and disease and is able to freely travel across the land of humans, the dwelling place of the gods, and the underworld. Hundreds of lesser demons are under his command. He took in Dazai some hundred years ago because he thought he could use him to gain access to the Scrolls of Heaven. Over time, he grew to fear that he will suffer the same fate as his predecessor and sought to drive Dazai out.

Elise — She takes on the appearance of a little girl, and is a mysterious being who originated from the West. No one knows how Mori came to be acquainted with her or why he decided to make her his familiar.

Ozaki Kouyou — A descendant of Kiyohime, she blinds men and youkai alike with her resplendent appearance, her ornate robes hiding her golden tail. It must be the curse of their line to fall in love with a human they cannot be with, as Ozaki's lover was killed in battle before they could run away south. Ozaki is one of Mori's more devout followers, and was disappointed when Kyouka chose to stay with Ranpo's household instead of returning back to her. She is in command of over a hundred oni and youkai.

Nakahara Chuuya — A kitsune who is only a few decades older than Dazai. Celebrated as the most beautiful kitsune born in the current millennium, he is fond of using his powers of flight and levitation to show off. Though not mischievous in nature as the other kitsune, sometimes he shapeshifts into either a beautiful man or woman to seduce powerful corrupt figures and punish unfaithful lovers. However, Chuuya is hotheaded and does not think things through, leading to Dazai fooling him into handing over his hoshi no tama. Before giving it back, Dazai extracted a promise from Chuuya that the latter will come to his aid whenever and whereever he called for him. As a result of this, he dreams of killing Dazai so he can finally be free of the promise. Another one of Mori's commanders, but more attached to Ozaki. Sometimes mistaken for a bakaneko.

Akutagawa Ryuunosuke —He was a sickly child whose body was used as a vessel to create an inugami. As such, he was raised in the family's storage room chest together with his sister. However, it turned out the family didn't follow the ritual and messed up, making the siblings unstable and feral. At first, they were only disobedient and would occasionally bite members of the family when hungry. But they turned more violent over the following weeks, with the head of the family deciding to put them down. The mix of hatred, pain and anger wrapped itself around Akutagawa and gave him immense spiritual power, allowing him to control a black beast he named Rashomon. Aktuagawa killed everyone in that family before being found by Dazai, who at that time was still under Mori. As a kitsune naturally hated the presence of dogs, he was extra harsh while training Akutagawa. After Dazai left Mori, Akutagawa rose up the ranks to make a name for himself. Since Akutagawa’s parents sold him and his sister for a bag of silver, he hates humans and thinks their greed knows no bounds.

Gin — Akutagawa's younger sister. She was a healthy child, but offered herself as a vessel because she couldn't stand seeing her brother suffer alone. Thanks to the incomplete ritual, she was left completely mute.

Hirotsu — A karasu tengu who valiantly guards Mori’s main temple. He once served the war god Mori sent to be permanently imprisoned in the underworld.

Higuchi Ichiyou — A miko who helps manage one of Mori's temples. A deep impression was left on her after witnessing Akutagawa make quick work of the demons who wanted to eat her.

Jiido — A fallen samurai who was betrayed by his own master. Because of his prowess in battle, he became an executioner for a circle of gods. Oda freed him from this miserable duty, although at the cost of his own life.

Notes:

— Dazai's backstory mostly takes inspiration from Abe no Seimei's.

— The setting is in Edo, during the Meireki Era. In a youkai AU, most people would want to place characters in the Heian Period, but I wanted this AU to be a little different.

— "If you eat a god you can possess their divinity" is a famous saying amongst youkai, but this claim has yet to be proven. Gods and deities do smell wonderful for youkai though.

— Since I'm not gonna be writing this story anyway, I imagine Ranpo having to come to terms with the fact that his friends will grow old and eventually die. He'd be left behind again. And he can't do anything about it, as rejecting his divinity means he has to pass it down to someone else. His body has only started accepting the divine energy, so if it's removed before his body can properly adjust, he’d be destroyed from the inside out. Dazai guessed he'd need to wait at least 25 years before he could safely pass his divinity on. And so one of the other sideplots is finding the whereabouts of the local god who came before Ranpo.

— Mori could have been a demon, but that would be expected so I made him a god. He'd just be as cunning and ruthless, but this time he'll also be more ambitious as he plans to unite Japan's youkai under him without the other gods taking notice. Ranpo's growing following grabs his attention and after learning that Dazai joined Ranpo's household... Well...

— RIP Oda, but since there's a way to cross to the land of the dead, maybe Dazai can see him again...?

— Notables gods like Amaterasu, Izanagi, Izanami, Susanoo and Tsukuyomi do exist in this AU, but they're unconcerned with the squabbles of everyone else. Gods, humans, demons — it's all the same to beings as powerful as them. They all have access to the Scrolls of Heaven, something which Mori greatly desires.

— ...Akutagawa could have been a kappa.

#bungou stray dogs #text #ssh #youkai au #honestly idk what happened but just take it #tagging for violence #just to be sure

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